After many rumours, Sergio Pérez will officially leave Red Bull (and Formula 1 as a whole) next year, and in his place, the British team -under the Austrian racing licence- will appoint Liam Lawson as his replacement, an opportunity for the 22-year-old New Zealander to race alongside four time winner Max Verstappen.
It is the highest point in a career that, as in the case of many other Formula 1 drivers, started with too many difficulties. Back in September, Lawson said that his parents went to financial troubles to make sure he got his chances, even selling their house to fund his career back when he raced in karts -which are very expensive, he said.
"My parents and siblings have given up so much for me to be here. This is as much their achievement as it is mine". But it is clear that he has made good use of his opportunity: after joining Red Bull Racing Junior Team in 2019, he finished second at the 2021 DTM.
Starting in 2023, he became a reserve driver for both Red Bull teams (the other being AlphaTauri, currently known as RB), debuting in 2023 as a replacement for Daniel Ricciardo, scoring points just in his second race in Singapore.
When Daniel Ricciardo was removed in September 2024, he completed the remaining of the season with RB, and now he has been promoted to Red Bull main team, the one with the World Champion, even passing over Yuki Tsunoda, his former teammate at RB.
Posted on Red Bull website is the way Lawson reacted when he found out about his new position. "Christian (Horner, Red Bull team principal) called me and gave me the classic one-liner: 'Welcome to Red Bull Racing.' Since then I couldn't stop smiling, my face hurt from smiling so much!"